Showing results by author "Valerie Bowman" in All Categories

Young, widowed, and penniless, Lily Andrews, the Countess of Merrill, has strong opinions on marriage. When she spots a certain engagement announcement in The Times, she decides to take action. She will not allow another hapless girl to fall prey to a man - particularly the scoundrel who broke her heart five years ago. Anonymously she writes and distributes a pamphlet entitled "Secrets of a Wedding Night," knowing it will find its way into his intended's innocent hands.

After defeating Napoleon at Waterloo, Captain Julian Swift is not quite ready to settle down and enter into his unwanted arranged marriage. Patience Bunbury is witty, independent, passionate, and, unbeknownst to him, the cousin of his current fiancée. When the truth about Cass comes out, will he surrender his heart to a woman who really is too good to be true?

Lady Upton's tongue may be too sharp to attract suitors, but her heart is good, and when her painfully shy friend Cassandra needs help, she devises a brilliant scheme to help her discourage an unwanted suitor, the Duke of Claringdon. Lucy will hide behind the hedgerow and tell Cass just what to say...but it turns out that he's made of sterner stuff than either of them anticipated. And Lucy is shocked to discover that tangling with the tenacious man is the most fun she's had in ages.

Every fortune-hunting female in London is after the newly titled Earl of Drake, but he's intent on finding a wife whose heart is true. So, while drunkenly jesting with his friends in a pub one night, he has an idea - what if the ladies of the ton didn't know he was a wealthy earl? All he has to do is pose as a servant at his friend's summer country house party and make sure the guest list is full of beautiful, eligible debutantes. What could possibly go wrong?

Annie Andrews has her heart set on marrying a certain man. Now that her guardian and sister, Lily, is off on her wedding trip on the continent, Annie is about to make one last attempt to marry Arthur before her sister can stop her. But Annie doesn't count on the best friend of her new brother-in-law, Jordan Holloway, Earl of Ashbourne, fouling up her plans. Jordan has vowed to keep an eye on the mischievous Miss Andrews. He has two weeks to keep her out of trouble and to keep her from running away again.

When Veronica said "I do" to Sebastian Sinclair, Duke of Edgefield, she thought all her dreams had come true. He was dashing and doting, and she absolutely adored him—until he betrayed her trust, shattering their marriage, and her heart, into a million tiny bits. She hasn't seen her husband in the two years since, and she'd just as soon make it twenty. But when she learns that her beloved grandfather's dying wish is for her and Sebastian to attend the family's Christmastide celebration, she swallows her pride and asks him a favor: to pretend they're the happy couple they once were.

Clare Handleton was ruined ten years ago and has borne the consequences ever since. Branded as "Scandalton" by the ton, she has long since stopped caring about Society's fickle rules. Now, at twenty-nine, she's mastered the art of slipping past her mother's scrutiny, appearing unfazed by it all. But when the dangerously handsome Marquess of Trentham crosses her path, he stirs something she thought long buried.

Meredith Drake has sworn off marriage after her disastrous union with a much older man. But when her best friend returns from war, the young widow pledges to help him find his bride. Griffin Brooks grew up as the "spare" son, who no one noticed. He went to war to forget that Meredith was out of his reach. But now he's back, and no longer the "spare." With a dukedom at stake, he must take a bride. And for him, there is only one choice.

Lady Gemma Brooks was still in her awkward phase when a spiteful young woman dared her to ask the unattainable Duke of Grovemont for a dance. But what began as a harmless dare spiraled into scandal, and Gemma soon finds herself forced into an unexpected marriage with a man she barely knows.

Lady Eliza Whitmoreland just wants to be left alone. A season and a husband are the last things she needs or wants. But when the ton's biggest rake tries to charm her, instead of rolling her eyes, she sees her chance. She challenges the blowhard to a game of chess. The prize? If she wins, he has to pretend to be her fiance for the rest of the season to get her mother off her back.

A duchess awaiting trial for her vile husband's murder is the most delicious gossip the ton has heard in years. But for Kate Townsende, the woman in question, it could be a matter of life and death. And when a shrewd and handsome nobleman offers to publish her side of the story while arranging for a barrister to take her case, she's tempted by much more than the chance to defend herself. James Bancroft, Viscount Medford, tells himself he's only interested in a best-selling pamphlet, but Kate's stubborn determination is captivating. Could the accused widow be telling the truth?

Ellie Lawson’s city life was treating her just fine until a sour turn of events knocks her out in one fell swoop. Dumped by her boyfriend and fired from her event planning job, she is left with no choice but to return to her parents’ idyllic inn, nestled within a picturesque Honeycrisp orchard on Long Island. Anticipating a quiet hiatus in the attic apartment, she is instead met with Aiden, the stubborn, attractive son of the orchard owner who is currently occupying her planned refuge.

Rhys Sheffield, the Duke of Worthington, has bet his friends an ungodly sum of money that despite his loftiness, he can pass himself off as a servant at the house party of the Season. But when his ex-flame arrives and recognizes Rhys pretending to be a groomsman, she realizes it's the perfect opportunity to pay him back for breaking off their engagement.

All of London knows Beau Bellham as the marquess of Bellingham, but only a trusted few know he also works for the Home Office. His specialty? Scouting out traitors to the Crown. So, when one of his friends pretends to be a footman at a house party in order to find a wife, Beau decides posing as a valet at the same gathering will be the perfect cover for him to spy on the men he suspects of treason. What Beau doesn't count on, however, is butting heads with a far-too-certain-of-herself maid who gives him hell at every turn.

Lady Jessica Whitmoreland has been waiting for her first Season her entire life and she has her eye on the best catch of the season, but when the gentleman of her dreams turns out to be a nightmare, what's a debutante to do?

Certain that no man wants a bluestocking for a wife, Miss Jane Lowndes is careful to wield her books and her spectacles as weapons against matrimony. Convincing her ambitious mama that she's content to stay a spinster is easier said than done, however. It's a good thing that Jane is not above a bit of manufactured scandal if it will keep her from the altar and the argumentative, contrary Lord Garrett Upton....

A dutiful lady's maid, Miss Madeline Atwater knows precisely what her future holds: countless nights of dressing her mistress in silk gowns, pinning her hair in elegant curls, and selecting the perfect pair of slippers before sending her off to the ball. But Madeline harbors a secret dream. Just once, she'd like to be the one who attends the grand party—and tonight could be her chance. All she needs to do is borrow her mistress's cast-off dress and sneak downstairs during the Twelfth Night Ball . . .

Fresh off the battlefield, Captain David Ellsworth has returned home to discover the shocking and unwelcome news that he's the new Earl of Elmwood. Though David had no idea he was in line for a title, he and his sister must now navigate the snark-infested waters of the London ton. He knows how to be a soldier, an officer, and a brother, but he hasn't a clue how to be an earl. David will need all the help he can get. Even if it comes from the undeniably beautiful woman...who is the darling of the world he detests.

Miss Sophie Payton might be engaged, but she's not in love. The only man who ever captured her heart was Phillip Grayson—a soldier who was slain a year ago. But when her stepmother decrees that Sophie will marry Phillip's cousin, the new Duke of Harlowe, she's in no position to refuse. The ton thinks Phillip Grayson died a hero on the battlefields of Europe, but he's very much alive, and he has returned to London. He doesn't understand how Sophie could have betrayed him; she can't forgive him for letting her believe he was dead. And yet neither can deny the attraction between them.

Ewan Fairchild, Viscount Clayton, has been busy ticking off the boxes for a bright future. Become a rising star in Parliament? Check. Find a lady he intends to marry? Check. Make his stables the envy of every man in London? Check, thanks to the prize Arabian thoroughbred he's just won at auction. Clayton's on his way to having it all and won't change course for anyone - not even the beautiful young woman next door.